On May 26, the von Liebig Entrepreneurism Center successfully completed its third year and seventh Cohort as an NSF I-Corps site. To celebrate, the Center threw a reception for all the students, faculty, and mentors who have participated, ending the night with presentations from Spring Quarter’s 12 teams. During the final presentations, teams presented their ideas, target markets, and lessons learned from customer interviews conducted throughout the quarter.

Each of the mentors ranked the presenting teams categories of progress throughout the program, as well as quality of presentations. Each and every mentor believes that the teams have developed significantly from their initial idea pitches to their final presentations.

For example, the idea for Catalyst Technologies was initially developed in India.  Through customer discovery and market research, Lenord Melvix, the Entrepreneurial Lead, pivoted his focus from Indian to small American hydroponic farmers who were interested in seeing how his solutions could significantly cut their operation costs.

Dr. Seth Alexander of GenTag Solutions identified that designing multiple "all-in-one kits" that allow technicians to tag and capture RNA are much more useful and potentially profitable than his initial offering of a "do-it-yourself" method for clinical and academic researchers. He was able to gather this crucial information through the customer discovery process, an important tactic taught by mentors at the Center.

Armando Armillo of Saros created unique 3D Printers for community maker spaces and individual hobbyists. Through the customer discovery process,  these customer segments revealed the need for a niche quality of 3D printing between high-cost industry grade and the slower, lower-cost consumer grade 3D printing.

Saharnaz Baghdadchi of Singular Imaging, a team from the Phase II group, is developing a single-pixel imaging microscope that reduces the time and cost of stem cell tissue sample processing.  Through customer discovery, researchers confirmed that a beneficial application of the microscope is its high-definition quality, providing images of greater depth for brain imaging research.

Over the past three years, the von Liebig Center (vLC) has trained approximately 100 teams (250 student and faculty participants) in the process of starting a company using the customer discovery process and lean startup methodology.  The two-phase program has resulted in over 2,780 customer interviews conducted, and 19 teams have since filed patents, 44 teams have created prototypes, and 9 teams have gone to the NSF I-Corps Teams (National) program.

According to a survey sent out to the teams, participants revealed that the best part of the (vLC) I-Corps program was the focus on mentor relationships, the cultivation of the entrepreneurial mindset, the understanding the customer discovery process, and enhanced presentation skills.

“The best part of the I-Corps program was going through the process of determining the value of your technology,” says Dustin Fraley of the HeatSeq project. “Great framework for developing a business plan and justifying why your technology is needed through potential user interviews,” Fraley said, commenting that it was an invaluable experience.

Beyond commercialization of technology, the von Liebig Center also hopes to impart and encourage an entrepreneurial mindset in students, faculty, and staff that will help in job searches, identifying other areas of research that are translatable, and writing more competitive grant proposals. This is in line with the vision of Don Millard, the Deputy Division Director of the Engineering Education and Centers (EEC) Division at the National Science Foundation. Millard has held this philosophy since the NSF I-Corps program was founded. Millard attended the Institute of the Global Entrepreneur launch on June 2nd and met with the Center about the strong outcomes UC San Diego’s NSF I-Corps site has produced.

“The best thing I learned was entrepreneur-like thinking. I'm currently looking into other potentially translatable technologies in my lab with the mindset imparted to me by the I-Corps program,” says Wangzhong Sheng, from the AMDepot project.

The NSF I-Corps program will be offered again in Fall 2016. Applications are open and teams will be selected in September. Click here to apply!

As a tribute to the success of NSF von Liebig Center, 5 out of the 8 finalists in the UCSD Entrepreneur Challenge -- NanoVR, Pain Measurement Technologies, Clip Diagnostics, Locana, and Genrix – had participated in the vLC I-Corps program and were awarded funds towards their projects by placing in the top 3 of their track.

Read more about the winners here, and take a look through Priya Bisarya’s experience here. 

von Liebig I-Corps Program Expands and Continues At Full Speed

Each quarter, the von Liebig Entrepreneurism Center’s I-Corps program continues at full speed, connecting students with the Center’s business and technology mentors and helping teams get ready to launch their products into the marketplace. During the 2014-2015 academic school year, the program had over 60 applicants express interest. 31 teams completed Phase I, offered in the Fall and Winter, and 25 teams completed Phase II, offered in the Winter and Spring. After graduating the von Liebig I-Corps program, two teams from the 2014-2015 cohort were accepted into the National I-Corps Program in Washington D.C., while others demonstrated their skills by competing in campus-wide, statewide and national competitions and taking home cash prizes and awards.

The Center is excited to see the I-Corps program expand and very proud of their teams and all that they have accomplished. The von Liebig I-Corps program is modeled after the National Science Foundation’s Innovation Corps program, with two phases for teams to develop their business models. To offer flexibility and more mentoring to their students, the Center allows the accepted teams to decide whether they want to continue onto Phase II after completing Phase I of the program.

The von Liebig Entrepreneurism Center gladly welcomes UC San Diego students, staff and alums to apply to participate as a Phase I team in its the I-Corps program in the fall and join our network of mentors and entrepreneurs. While the hard work does not end here, we know it won’t be long until this cohort’s projects and ideas hit the market. Until then, we’ll let you take a peek at what many of our teams have been working on.

The Cocoon Cam team and mentor
Dennis Abremski completed the National
I-Corps Program in Washington, D.C.

Wearless Tech Inc., Intraocular Pressure Sensor, AMDepot, HeatSeq, Meego, Wastelights, Gyroscopic Ocean Wave Energy Converter (GOWEC), PlasmaCaps, 3D Organ on a Chip, EMERES: Cyber System for Structural Health Monitoring, Data Intelligence, Enzyme Diagnostics, MuDetect, Pressure Sensitive Touchscreen, Open Topography, SciCrunch and FRET Biosensors became experts at developing business models and are well-equipped with customer insight, mentor advice and industry connections to aid them in their next steps forward. These teams have completed the both phases of the program for a combined sixteen weeks of instruction and mentoring.

Team members Pavan Kumar Pavagada Nagaraja, Sivakumar Nattamai and Rubi Sanchez founded Wearless Tech Inc,. a company that further developed their project Cocoon Cam: Wearless Smart Baby Monitor in the I-Corps program with mentor Dennis Abremski, VP of SoCal EED, Inc. Cocoon Cam is a wearless (non-contact), network-connected baby monitor designed for parents looking for a simple, secure way to monitor their newborns. The device uses machine vision to measure heart and respiratory rate and infrared sensors to detect skin temperature. After completing the von Liebig I-Corps Program, the team went on to complete the National I-Corps Program in Washington, D.C.

Oculux team took 2nd place at this year's Entrepreneur Challenge,
AMDepot (not pictured) took home 4th place.

Mechanical Engineering graduate students Alex Phan, Yung Seo and Ben Suen of the Oculux (formerly Intraocular Pressure Sensor) team developed a novel implantable pressure sensor that allows continuous monitoring and enables physicians to personalize treatment plans for patients and better preserve their vision. The team explained that glaucoma is an incurable eye disease that affects 60 million people worldwide, and the lack of frequent eye pressure measurement prevents successful treatments and increase in total blindness. Oculux took home second prize at Entrepreneur Challenge this year and was also recently accepted into the Fall 2016 Cohort of the National I-Corps Program.

Mechanical engineer Wangzhong Sheng and nanoengineer Viet Anh Nguyen Huu of AMDepot developed a drug delivery vehicle that releases therapeutic amounts through a single injection of a depot that is activated by biologically benign flashes of light. AMDepot’s method reduces the frequency of injections needed, as well as allows noninvasively controlled dosing. AMDepot explained that the estimated global healthcare cost for eye-related diseases is well over $250 billion and that one of the most severe diseases, the wet-form of age-related macular degeneration (wet AMD) affects 2 million Americans and can lead to severe and sudden loss of vision. The current treatment for AMD requires monthly or bi-monthly injections of drugs into the eye, which can lead to complications with each injection. AMDepot also took home fourth prize at this year's Entrepreneur Challenge.

HeatSeq team members Dustin Fraley and Stephanie Fraley developed an integrative technology that allows for rapid, automated, and highly accurate DNA profiling from a single precious clinical sample. “We are developing this technology for use in personalized medicine, where there is a need for more comprehensive molecular analysis of DNA for profiling diseases and drug efficiency,” wrote the team members.

Meego team members Delara Fadavi, Aditi Gupta, Ian McNair, Sammie Wang, Oscar Guerrero and Katya Grishna explain that stolen laptops, in the United States alone, account for $2.1 billion in losses annually and that most thefts occur in public places or during travel. The team aims to deter laptop theft through their small, mountable portable device that will sound an alarm when unanticipated motion is detected and notify owners via mobile alert if their Meego has been activated.

The Wastelights team took the hard reality that the world has an abundance of waste, but not enough electricity, and served up a solution. Team members Joyce Sunday and Nitya Timalsina developed their second prototype of a device that eliminates waste by converting it into electricity and biochar. Wastelights’ constructed prototype is able to reliably provide energy and eliminate waste without combustion at low cost and maintenance. During the program, Wastelights was able to generate transnational interest and conduct interviews from abroad.

Oscar Rios and Ardavan Amini of Gyroscopic Ocean Wave Energy Converter (GOWEC) address the need for clean and efficient power generation in a wide range of markets through the development of their wave energy converter that utilizes gyroscopic principles. The team explains: “the world currently uses approximately 15 trillion kWh of electricity per annum, representing just 0.02 percent of the energy contained throughout the world’s oceans.”

Graduate student Rajaram Narayanan and Prabhakar Bandaru, Ph.D. of the PlasmaCaps team designed a powerful energy technology that improves energy density capacitors. PlasmaCaps was accepted into the accelerated National I-Corps program in Washington D.C. and plans to continue improving their design. During the program, the team was mentored by Kai Wenk-Wolff, M.B.A., conducted customers interviews and incorporated feedback into their redesign.

The 3D Organ on a Chip team recognized that too many drugs pass cell based testing on to animal testing and that pharmaceutical companies spend $1-3 billion on each drug when bringing them to market. After conducting 23 customer interviews, team members Aereas Aung, Gaurav Agrawal, Ivneet Bhullar and Han Liang Lim identified a specific market niche and verified a need for their platform to reduce the time and cost of preclinical studies.

Structural Engineering Ph.D. candidate Hamed Ebrahimian presented EMERES: Cyber System for Structural Health Monitoring, his low cost system for rapid health monitoring and damage analysis of offshore platforms. Ebrahimian explained the need for their technology, noting that platform structures age, are expensive and often fail. His automated resident monitoring system would replace inspection process of platform structures, while its mechanic space model is trained to pinpoint damage, location and other detailed information that inspections cannot provide.

Siarhei Vishniakou, Cooper Levy and Conor Riley make up the Pressure Sensitive Touchscreen team who want to expand traditional touchscreens’ limited capabilities. “Most touchscreens can only detect location, and cannot sense how hard the user actually pressed” explained the team. Their product is a touchscreen that can determine the intensity of a user press for music, medical and gaming applications. During the program, the Pressure Sensitive Touchscreen team conducted over 20 customer interviews, saw a great fit in the market and found their biggest competitor.

Augusta Modestino, Ph.D. and Ph.D. candidate Elaine Skowronski make up the Enzyme Diagnostics team that hopes to fill the gap within in vitro diagnostics, so that data can translate from high-throughput volume labs to point of care systems. During their presentation, the team explained that diagnostics are the silent champion of healthcare and that there is a need for better result comparisons for in and out patients.

The Data Intelligence team from UC San Diego’s Math Department created a novel technique for data extraction, allowing users to merge databases and cross reference data for improved predictions. During the program, team members David Meyer, David Rideout, Asif Shakeel gained insight into how and where their product would fit best in the market.  

Matt Walsh and Aric Jonejah, Ph.D. of the MuDetect team created a simplified analysis system that only detects relevant mutations to reduce both cost and supply of clinics and labs. During the program, the team learned how to identify and target customer segments and define their value proposition.

OpenTopography team members Vishu Nandigam and Chris Crosby developed an improved high resolution dataset and software tool for processing data using a cloud hosted solution with web based software and an interactive map interface. Their workflow-based system provides a significantly more efficient solution for distribution and processing of massive datasets.

The SciCrunch wants to accelerate biomedical research by means of an open access “data ocean.” Team members Anita Bandrowski, Ph.D., Jeffrey Grethe, Ph.D., Maryann Martone, Ph.D. and Andrea de Souza, MBA want to develop a platform that makes data accessible easily findable, interoperable and reusable. Throughout the program, the team conducted customer interviews that helped them identify the market’s segments and customers and analyze its competitors.

A Conversation with Pierre Sleiman: Reimagining Farming through Sustainable Frontiers

UC San Diego held its annual Alumni Weekend June 6-7, 2015 and featured a talk by Pierre Sleiman, graduate of Rady School of Business Class of 2013 and UC San Diego Alumni Honoree of 2015. Sleiman is the founder and CEO of Go Green Agriculture, a company dedicated to local farming and sustainability through hydroponic technology with strong family values. 

The event was held in The Basement, a shared campus-wide enterprise operated by Alumni & Community Engagement with a mission to stimulate, encourage and serve the entrepreneurial spirit of UC San Diego undergraduate students by educating them in the startup business process whether it’s evaluating an opportunity, starting a company or joining an existing startup.

Sleiman spoke of his initial entrepreneurial endeavors, from starting his first business to brainstorming in his college dorm room. Because he had to support himself financially in college, Sleiman wanted to create his own company that combined agriculture and technology.

“I always admired successful people and hearing about their stories," said Sleiman. "However, I would always want to know all the nitty-gritty stuff, which people often chose not to speak of. But really, all that stuff is critical to success.” 

So, Sleiman shared some of his own struggles. Though he was regarded as the "networking assassin" by his graduating class, Sleiman strongly disliked public speaking as a kid - imagine a nervous student with heart pounding, palms sweating, terrified. He wanted to improve himself, so he worked hard at becoming more comfortable with public speaking. It wasn't easy - he went through many rejections and moments of embarrassment before he found confidence within himself. Slowly, public speaking became somewhat of an adrenaline rush, and he now encourages everyone to practice as much as possible.

Pierre Sleiman and his father

According to Sleiman, networking is like dating.

"You have to have a purpose, and your entry and exit should be executed with good timing and style," said Sleiman. "More importantly, you have to sell your personality and connect on a human level." 

For example, Sleiman says he focuses on creating a relationship with his customer - whether that be a buyer, investor, or someone just trying to learn more about his company - rather than the selling the business. 

"You're not investing in Go Green," said Sleiman. "You're not investing in this product. You're investing in me."

Beyond networking, the entrepreneur says he loves helping others find their motivations. He suggests looking at what is important to you and what you are willing to lose. 

"Sometimes you find that you have nothing that is important, but that's perfectly okay," said Sleiman. "Many people are still looking for the formula."

The search for that formula can be short for some, such as Zeke Bottorff, a current fifth year transfer and one of the CEOs of the Entrepreneur Challenge. Having grown up in a poor family with his earliest memories taking place in a trailer park where he lived, Bottorff took on his first job at the age of five. 

Bottorff is heavily involved with The Basement, which he describes as a new space for entrepreneurs, a "student-to-student organization serving to help businesses grow and expand." 

Rady School student Mike Hayden is also involved in the organization and describes The Basement as an "inclusive workspace for students to collaborate" that "provides resources for students who are active entrepreneurs." 

Hayden describes Sleiman as a phenomenal leader who can energize just about any situation or any person. "It's no wonder that all he has to do is sell himself," said Hayden.

Entrepreneurism & Leadership Program Students Sweep Top Places at E-Challenge Contest

Six students supported by the UC San Diego Jacobs School of Engineering’s Entrepreneurism and Leadership Programs sweep five out of six top positions at the Entrepreneur Challenge Elevator Pitch Contest.

The Entrepreneur Challenge is a UC San Diego student organization focused on connecting science, engineering and business students with local entrepreneurs and professionals in San Diego. EChallenge competitions are excellent opportunities for students to receive early seed funding and publicity for their research and ideas.

Taking first place in the Tech Division were Deepak Atyam and Alex Finch (pictured above). Atyam, a Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering student, and Finch, a Structural Engineering student are the founders a startup on a mission to use 3D printing to create designs for high performing, light weight, cost efficient rocket engines: Tri D Dynamics. The team's accomplishments have made UC San Diego the first university in the world to successfully design, print, and test a metal 3D printed rocket engine. Finch and Atyam started as a Moxie Center Incubator team, where they were provided lab space to develop their product and create working prototypes. The two honed their skills in becoming more effective technical leaders as scholars in the Gordon Engineering Leadership Center and made use of the von Liebig NSF I-Corps program to focus on customer validation of their product.

Bioengineering student Delara Fadavi (pictured below, on the right) won second place in the Tech category for her presentation Meego. Fadavi founded Meego with Bioengineering student Aditi Gupta (pictured below, on the left) to develop a motion-detecting security device for laptops. They’re developing a prototype for students who expressed a need for increased security while they study in public spaces, such as the library or a coffee shop. Both students completed the von Liebig Center’s I-Corps program and are part of Moxie’s incubator program. Fadavi was a 2013 Gordon Scholar and an alum of the mystartupXX program which is a collaborative effort between the von Liebig Entrepreneurism Center and the Rady School of Management.

First place in the Bio/Med category went to Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering student Alex Phan for his work in Intraocular. The Intraocular team is working on improving the diagnosis and treatment of glaucoma using continuous intraocular pressure measurement. During the von Liebig NSF I-Corps program, Phan worked to develop the team’s business model and validate the idea with potential customers.

Wangzhong Shen – a Mechanical Engineering student – took second place in the Bio/Med category for Nanolipo. The Nanolipo is improving invasive liposuction treatments through the injection of a solution to better dissolve fatty tissue making it easier to extract during liposuction procedures. Shen is an alum of the von Liebig NSF I-Corps program.

Stephanie Allen-Soltero – a post doc in the Department of Medicine – took third place in the Bio/Med category for her Cereus Innovation pitch. The Cereus team has a novel solution for overcoming the growth and maintenance of stem cells in high atmospheric oxygen. Allen-Soltero is currently part of the mystartupXX program which is a collaboration between the Rady School of Management and von Liebig Entrepreneurism Center and is supported by the National Collegiate Inventors and Innovators Alliance. MystartupXX mentors female entrepreneurs with ideas to commercialize.

We would like to offer our students, Deepak Atyam, Alex Finch, Delara Fadavi, Alex Phan, Wangzhong Shen and Stephanie Allen Soltero, each a proud congratulations on their excellent performance and continued success!